Whatever Happened To Lisa Lisa?

This week I posted Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam's classic "Lost In Emotion" to this site as the 20 years Before 2000 Jam of the week! I was a big fan of Lisa Lisa back in the day. I remember when "Head To Toe" would come on the radio while me and my siblings were doing our Saturday chores around the house. I would rock out and be jumping off the furniture while I listened to the sultry sound of Lisa Lisa's voice and the dynamic grooves of Cult Jam. This all got me wondering...Whatever Happened To Lisa Lisa?

Before we get to that, let's take a quick look at how Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam became stars in the 80's & 90's music scene. Cult Jam was brought together in the early 80's by Producers/Actors/Singers Full Force of House Party fame. The group consisted of Lisa Lisa Velez, Alex Moseley (guitar/bass) and Mike Hughes (drums/keyboard). Their debut single "I Wonder If I Take You Home" was released in 1983 to Europe without much fanfare. 

It wasn't until almost a year later that the single would see some club play in the US and the popularity grew. This lead to the full length album "Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam with Full Force" being released in 1985. The album featured the Top 40 hits "Can You Feel The Beat" and "All Cried Out". The album eventually went platinum.

The follow up album "Spanish Fly" was released in 1987 and was the peak of the group's success. This album contained the #1 chart topping hits "Lost In Emotion" and my favorite of their songs, "Head To Toe". This album also went platinum.

Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam would release 2 more albums, 1989's "Straight To The Sky" and 1991's "Straight Outta Hell's Kitchen" which would be the group's final album as they disbanded later that year. So whatever happened to Lisa Lisa after the split? Let's find out!

Like most singers, after her group broke up Lisa Lisa went solo and released her first album "LL77" in 1994. This album included the singles "When I Fell In Love" and "Skip To My Lu". She followed up that effort almost 15 years later with the release of the full length album "Life 'n Love". The notable single from that album would be "Can't Wait" which featured rapper Pitbull. 

These albums failed to reach the levels of success Lisa Lisa had with Cult Jam, but in between projects she discovered another talent...acting!

Lisa Lisa took on a recurring role as Gloria Elana Morales in the Nickelodeon show "Taina". Lisa's character was the mother of the title character. The show lasted 26 episodes over 2 seasons. The show did win an ALMA (American Latino Media Arts) Award in 2002 for "Outstanding Children's Television Programming". In 2003, Lisa Lisa appeared on an episode of "Law & Order" as Lucy Mireles in the episode "Smoke".

Last I heard Lisa Lisa had started her own footwear line and had signed with Snoop Dogg's Entertainment Company "Uncle Snoop's Army". Before COVID, she was still touring with other singers from the era and hopefully afterward we will see her hit the stage again! I would love to see her perform live!!!

If you want more info on Lisa Lisa check her out on Facebook or on her website at TheRealLisaLisa.com!